From the tone of his voice, I knew that he felt sorry for me. I appreciated that but that didn’t help open this door! “Luka! Open the door! Please! Please open the door…” I wailed while crying. My whole body shook with the strength of my own sobs. My voice cracked and I found it hard to breathe; however, that didn’t keep me from beating my hands against the door. Luka didn’t respond but I knew that he was still standing there in front of the door. “Luka…please…” I begged. Luka just said that he’s not sure if Hayden can make it to see me tomorrow. Doesn’t that mean that he’s hurt badly? He’s going to be stuck in the hospital, right? “I’ll let Hayden know that you wish to see him,” Luka said flatly. “Wait! Luka! Luka!” I yelled loudly. Luka didn’t reply again, and I knew that he was no longer on the other side of the door. Although I knew that Luka had left, I continued to bang on the door as more tears streamed down my cheek. Why is this happening now of all times?! After scre
The room was completely dark because I had closed the curtains completely. My eyes couldn’t make out anything in the darkness. The sound of my harsh breathing filled the room as I panted and struggled to recover from my shock. “You’re as loud as always…” a low voice whispered from the foot of my bed. “…Hayden?” I called out his name in disbelief.It better be Hayden and not some ghost…“Don’t scream my name when I’m already sitting so close,” Hayden replied calmly.I felt the mattress shift underneath me slightly as Hayden moved closer to me on the bed. It was dark and I couldn’t make out anything but his silhouette.“Are you really here?” I asked just to make sure that I wasn’t seeing and hearing things. “I’m here,” he replied firmly. He’s really here…wow.Before I could say anything, Hayden began talking first and the first thing he asked me was…“Did you eat dinner properly?” he asked. Seriously, is that what he’s worried about at a time like this?“…No…” I admitted truthfully
“Why did you sneak out? You should go back to the hospital. We can get one of the men to drive you back, right?” I suggested quickly. “Calm down, Malissa. You’re giving me a headache worst than any injury that I have on my body,” Hayden said as he frowned disapprovingly at me. “You should go back to the hospital,” I said firmly. “I’m not going. I drove back here myself, I’m fine…” Hayden said stubbornly. He drove here? After a car accident, he drove back here himself? I didn’t know what else to say. I rest my case here. Now that we’re talking, I might as well ask him about the situation outside. Luka mentioned that peace is being disturbed and I wondered if that was true. I wanted to know if that was why Hayden is keeping me locked up in here like this. “Hayden. Luka told me that it’s not safe for me to go outside. He said that the gangs are fighting. Is that true?” I asked while trying my best to pick my words carefully. It took a lot of effort to get those words out; however,
I nodded my head when I had made my decision. Hayden reached his hand towards me and patted the top of my head gently. I flinched when I saw the bandages around some of his fingers and closed my eyes. “Luka was telling the truth. Although I told him not to say anything I guess he went ahead and told you anyways. It’s not safe outside right now and since we’ve been seen together often lately, I figured that it would be safer to keep you here. Needless to say, I’m also keeping you away from Ethan and his influence,” Hayden admitted straightforwardly. “What about you? Luka mentioned that it wasn’t very safe for you too…” I asked, recalling Luka’s words. “He said that? Don’t worry about me. It’s safe enough for me…” Hayden said casually. “I see. Please stay safe…” I said with worry. “Starting from tomorrow, I’ll allow you to go outside these rooms as long as you stay in the mansion. Ask Auntie to give you a tour of the mansion. She will let you know of the parts that are off-limits.
Slowly, I reached out my hand and ran my fingers gently through his blond hair while Hayden continued to rest with his eyes closed. The way the corners of his lips curled upwards a little made me feel that he liked it when I did this. “Would you be happier if you could paint more?” Hayden spoke up softly with his eyes still closed. “I guess. Probably,” I replied thoughtfully. “Do you have like a website or something where people can view your portfolio online?” Hayden asked. “Honestly, I haven’t gotten around to setting anything like that up. I know that I should though…” I said as I pursed my lips together in thought. Unknowingly, my hand had stopped stroking his hair and Hayden stirred before opening his eyes. “You should make a website so everyone can see your work…” Hayden said resolutely. “I guess you’re right. I’ll work on it soon…” I replied. “Not good enough. You have all the time in the world now. Start today,” Hayden replied strictly. The way he said it made me feel
“Get your hand off my mouth!” the boss screamed once he managed to yank Hayden’s hand away. “Calm down…” Hayden said. “You of all people don’t have the right to say that to me!” the boss continued yelling. “Stop screaming…” Hayden muttered. “I’m going to scream until you understand what the fuck you’ve done! Have you seen this? Have you seen this!?” the boss shouted as he shoved a piece of paper in Hayden’s face. Hayden took the paper from his father’s hand and scanned the printed text with his eyes. He had a look of surprise on his face for a brief moment before his eyes narrowed and his face darkened evidently. “Why would he do this…?” Hayden asked in wonder. “Ethan is evil. He’s doing this all on purpose to screw with everyone’s head. He returned home beaten up so imagine how pissed of the Silvas are about it right now. Then this morning, he sent a fucking letter of apology straight to my office for getting into a fight with my son. Guess who the Silvas are pissed off at rig
It was a little over an hour before Hayden returned to the room. I spent the past hour sitting on the sofa as I fretted about what had just happened. However, it seemed like there wasn’t anything for me to worry about. When Hayden returned to the room, he seemed calmed and collected. He had a pleasant smile for me, and I found myself smiling back. “Why did your father visit? He seemed so angry…is everything ok?” I asked and I could hear my own concern in my voice.Hayden sat down next to me on the sofa and wrapped an arm around my shoulders. Although some trouble went down between him and the boss, Hayden didn’t seem disturbed in the slightest. “Nothing much. The boss got mad because I snuck out of the hospital, but I told him that I’m fine now. The other gang members are quite panicked because of the accident that I had but the old man will assure them that I’m ok and that should put them at ease. It’s not a big deal, really,” Hayden said carefreely before turning to smile confiden
I stared at the plain white paper in front of me with my lips pursed together tightly as my mind struggled to come up with any ideas for the website. Although I had readily promised Hayden that I would have ideas to show him when he got back, I had clearly underestimated the task. After almost an hour of thinking, I wasn’t sure what I wanted the website to look like. Apart from the basic functionalities that I could reference from other similar sites, I had no idea how to make my website stand out. The biggest issue was how to make the website represent my style of art. My plan was to sketch out a few website layouts to show Hayden later today but so far, the page was white, pristine, and very empty. I shouldn’t have promised him anything so easily. Changing my approach a little, I turned on the laptop and started researching website of other artists to see how they showcased their online portfolio. Some website had forms for visitors to fill in to request for commissions as well. Th